Lack of delivery drivers leave seniors without meals this holiday season

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - Nancy Schultejans, 91, lives in her apartment in University City and relies on her weekly delivery of meals from GA Foods.

The company delivers to around 1,000 clients in the St. Louis area but in October, Schultejans says the meals stopped coming on some weeks, and another week a box arrived with the dry ice all evaporated.

“Who’s eating the food my social security paid for?” asked Schultejans.

She says she’s lucky. Her son lives nearby and can take her to the store to bridge the gap by the missing meals. But they worry about others.

News 4 contacted the GA Foods Regional Center in South St. Louis. But they directed us to the corporate office. The company is based in Florida and serves people across the country.

“We don’t want anyone to go without meals,” said David Haugen, the VP of Logistics at GA Foods.

Haugen says the biggest challenge in St. Louis and other markets is finding reliable delivery drivers. They have six when they need nine. He tells News 4 they are working to hire additional employees and in the meantime are contracting with third-party delivery drivers like FedEx. He says no one should be charged if a meal isn’t delivered.

News 4 also reached out to the St. Louis area Agency on Aging to find out if others are impacted and if there are other options available. We’re waiting to hear back.

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